In case nobody's brought it up, should I-11 get built to Reno, most of the traffic on it late in the year will most likely be Raiders fans traveling to Vegas to watch the team play (well, what few from Oakland that might be making the trip.)

I'm sure by the time I-11 is built to I-80, the Raiders will have abandoned Vegas to go back to Oakland. That's their modus operandi, after all.

In case nobody's brought it up, should I-11 get built to Reno, most of the traffic on it late in the year will most likely be Raiders fans traveling to Vegas to watch the team play (well, what few from Oakland that might be making the trip.)

I'm sure by the time I-11 is built to I-80, the Raiders will have abandoned Vegas to go back to Oakland. That's their modus operandi, after all.

If Vegas doesn't work out in terms of attendance, Mark Davis will go wherever he can get a huge stadium subsidy (one of the Oakland sticking points). San Antonio, San Diego, Sacramento......any place there's land, desire for a NFL team, and public $$ to be had. But the team will likely stick out Vegas for at least 5-7 years (they did so with L.A. for 11 -- and that was without their own dedicated stadium, which seems to be an imperative for current management). But we shall see. Maybe if I-11 is extended, the fan base might well expand to include Boise!

Would I be right in stating that once the Raiders are in Vegas, the AFC West would be the only division (at least in the NFL) where you could use one or two highways to access all their teams' cities? (Because LA residents would need to use one of four E-W highways to get to the 15 to get to Vegas; and from there they'd have to use I-15 and I-70 to get to Denver and KC.)

Would I be right in stating that once the Raiders are in Vegas, the AFC West would be the only division (at least in the NFL) where you could use one or two highways to access all their teams' cities? (Because LA residents would need to use one of four E-W highways to get to the 15 to get to Vegas; and from there they'd have to use I-15 and I-70 to get to Denver and KC.)

NFC North only needs I-94 and either I-43 or I-41, depending on your chosen route between Milwaukee and Green Bay

AFC East only needs I-95 and I-90...granted it's a long haul on I-95 from Boston to Miami...and very soon it will even be continuous!

Would I be right in stating that once the Raiders are in Vegas, the AFC West would be the only division (at least in the NFL) where you could use one or two highways to access all their teams' cities? (Because LA residents would need to use one of four E-W highways to get to the 15 to get to Vegas; and from there they'd have to use I-15 and I-70 to get to Denver and KC.)

NFC North only needs I-94 and either I-43 or I-41, depending on your chosen route between Milwaukee and Green Bay

The fastest route from Green Bay to the Twin Cities would take WIS 29 to I-94 several miles west of Eau Claire.

Would I be right in stating that once the Raiders are in Vegas, the AFC West would be the only division (at least in the NFL) where you could use one or two highways to access all their teams' cities? (Because LA residents would need to use one of four E-W highways to get to the 15 to get to Vegas; and from there they'd have to use I-15 and I-70 to get to Denver and KC.)

NFC North only needs I-94 and either I-43 or I-41, depending on your chosen route between Milwaukee and Green Bay

The fastest route from Green Bay to the Twin Cities would take WIS 29 to I-94 several miles west of Eau Claire.

Agreed that I-94 to I-41 or I-43 in Milwaukee is not the fastest route between the Twin Cities and Green Bay, but it does connect the two NFL cities

Heck, go back in time to the 3 Division per Conference NFL, when Tampa was in the old NFC Central with Chicago, Green Bay, Minnesota, and Detroit, and the two highways then would be I-94 and US 41

One could say that the NFC East only needs I-95 and I-20, but I don’t think I-95 to I-20 is the best practical driving route from Dallas to any of DC, Philly, or NYC

One could also say the AFC South only needs I-65 and I-10...Those two Interstates connect all 4 cities of Houston, Jacksonville, Indy, and Nashville...But really, I-10 connects Houston and Jacksonville, and I-65 connects Indy to Nashville, and I-65 does connect to I-10, but using I-10 to I-65 to travel between Houston or Jacksonville to Indy or Nashville would be nuts!

If Vegas doesn't work out in terms of attendance, Mark Davis will go wherever he can get a huge stadium subsidy (one of the Oakland sticking points). San Antonio, San Diego, Sacramento......any place there's land, desire for a NFL team, and public $$ to be had. But the team will likely stick out Vegas for at least 5-7 years (they did so with L.A. for 11 -- and that was without their own dedicated stadium, which seems to be an imperative for current management). But we shall see. Maybe if I-11 is extended, the fan base might well expand to include Boise!

I have a feeling the Raiders will be right at home in Las Vegas. Seems kind of fitting too, given the team name and all the casinos "raiding" tourist wallets.

Even if the Raiders don't stay in Vegas for the long term I think chances are good the San Antonio-Austin area will snare an NFL team before the Raiders are able to make another move. I'd give it within the next 5 to 10 years. Buffalo, Charlotte and Jacksonville are on the bubble. The Bills, Panthers and Jaguars all want brand new, state of the art stadiums, which currently come with price tags topping well above $1 billion. I strongly doubt the taxpayers of all 3 of those cities would agree to shouldering that cost.

The Panthers' stadium (currently "Bank of America" stadium) opened in 1996. The Jaguars' stadium (aka TIAA Bank Field) opened in 1995. The Bills' stadium (now called New Era Field) opened in 1973. The Bill's field is pretty old and outdated in terms of NFL stadiums. The stadiums for the Panthers and Jaguars are not really old at all. But just like the Georgia Dome, those 1990's era stadiums are not in the same class as the current generation of new stadiums. Cowboys Stadium got this whole billion dollar stadium trend started.

If I had to bet on which team would relocate first I'd say the Bills. The metro population is 1.1 million (2010 census). The Bills' 2018 season has started off badly; the organization shed some of its best (and most expensive) players. The locals may not be too keen on paying a fortune for a new stadium if the team is not winning. Charlotte is a bigger city than Buffalo (800,000 in the city limits, 2.4 million MSA). Jacksonville has around 800,000 residents within its city limits and a 1.3 million MSA.

A new NFL stadium located in the vicinity of New Braunfels or San Marcos would be in one of the most rapidly growing areas of the US. Austin's MSA is over 2 million with a city limits population at the edge of 1 million. San Antonio's city limits population is above 1 million, with a MSA over 2 million. There's about 4.5 million people living in that region along I-35. And there's some big money there. I think if Mark Davis had any plans to move the Raiders to Texas he blew the one shot he had. If he wants to move the team out of Vegas 10 years from now he'll have to look at other cities like maybe San Diego!

If Vegas doesn't work out in terms of attendance, Mark Davis will go wherever he can get a huge stadium subsidy (one of the Oakland sticking points). San Antonio, San Diego, Sacramento......any place there's land, desire for a NFL team, and public $$ to be had. But the team will likely stick out Vegas for at least 5-7 years (they did so with L.A. for 11 -- and that was without their own dedicated stadium, which seems to be an imperative for current management). But we shall see. Maybe if I-11 is extended, the fan base might well expand to include Boise!

The Raiders are going to do fine in Vegas. They're still the most popular team in LA, and Vegas is a 3-4 hour drive from the LA Basin instead of Oakland's… well… 6-ish. Plus, as the Golden Knights have seen, plenty of folks are interested in making a weekend of a Vegas trip to see their home team on the road.

But Vegas was already a Raiders town, and the proximity to LA will make them fine (and, totally off topic hot take: disappoint Dean Spanos to the point where he goes back to San Diego)

I'm sure the craze to replace '90s era stadiums will only pick up before it dies down. It's gotten to a point that we'd rather start over with something new than keep something old going. I mean, look at Lambeau Field for instance. It opened in the '60s and the Packers make it better all the time; ditto on the Superdome. Now, to get the thread back on topic, I still think it would be cheaper and easier to make I-515 I-11 through Vegas, and route it along US 95 as much as possible to Carson City and Reno.

I'm sure the craze to replace '90s era stadiums will only pick up before it dies down. It's gotten to a point that we'd rather start over with something new than keep something old going. I mean, look at Lambeau Field for instance. It opened in the '60s and the Packers make it better all the time; ditto on the Superdome. Now, to get the thread back on topic, I still think it would be cheaper and easier to make I-515 I-11 through Vegas, and route it along US 95 as much as possible to Carson City and Reno.

Check upthread; Carson City's no longer in the mix. Odds are I-11 will intersect I-80 within 3-4 miles of Fernley -- which makes sense, since that optimizes bidirectional dispersal of NB traffic -- west to Reno and northeast to Idaho. Since the "classic" Reno-Vegas route was Fernley-Fallon then south on US 95, the remaining options as selected by NDOT planners essentially mimic that function.

I'm sure the craze to replace '90s era stadiums will only pick up before it dies down. It's gotten to a point that we'd rather start over with something new than keep something old going. I mean, look at Lambeau Field for instance. It opened in the '60s and the Packers make it better all the time; ditto on the Superdome. Now, to get the thread back on topic, I still think it would be cheaper and easier to make I-515 I-11 through Vegas, and route it along US 95 as much as possible to Carson City and Reno.

Check upthread; Carson City's no longer in the mix. Odds are I-11 will intersect I-80 within 3-4 miles of Fernley -- which makes sense, since that optimizes bidirectional dispersal of NB traffic -- west to Reno and northeast to Idaho. Since the "classic" Reno-Vegas route was Fernley-Fallon then south on US 95, the remaining options as selected by NDOT planners essentially mimic that function.

Would I be right in stating that once the Raiders are in Vegas, the AFC West would be the only division (at least in the NFL) where you could use one or two highways to access all their teams' cities? (Because LA residents would need to use one of four E-W highways to get to the 15 to get to Vegas; and from there they'd have to use I-15 and I-70 to get to Denver and KC.)

NFC North only needs I-94 and either I-43 or I-41, depending on your chosen route between Milwaukee and Green Bay

AFC East only needs I-95 and I-90...granted it's a long haul on I-95 from Boston to Miami...and very soon it will even be continuous!

Would I be right in stating that once the Raiders are in Vegas, the AFC West would be the only division (at least in the NFL) where you could use one or two highways to access all their teams' cities? (Because LA residents would need to use one of four E-W highways to get to the 15 to get to Vegas; and from there they'd have to use I-15 and I-70 to get to Denver and KC.)

NFC North only needs I-94 and either I-43 or I-41, depending on your chosen route between Milwaukee and Green Bay

AFC East only needs I-95 and I-90...granted it's a long haul on I-95 from Boston to Miami...and very soon it will even be continuous!

What? Are they (finally) closing that gap in NJ?

Yeah -- but they're doing it in PA! Long thread in Northeast about this, supposed to open in a week or so!

Yeah -- but they're doing it in PA! Long thread in Northeast about this, supposed to open in a week or so!

Depending on the weather, it will open sometime between this Saturday morning and Monday morning. There was a road meet (Golden Spike Meet) coordinated and hosted by our own Brian Troutman at the construction site last Thursday. Turnpike officials briefed the group and conducted a thorough tour or the site.

If Vegas doesn't work out in terms of attendance, Mark Davis will go wherever he can get a huge stadium subsidy (one of the Oakland sticking points). San Antonio, San Diego, Sacramento......any place there's land, desire for a NFL team, and public $$ to be had. But the team will likely stick out Vegas for at least 5-7 years (they did so with L.A. for 11 -- and that was without their own dedicated stadium, which seems to be an imperative for current management). But we shall see. Maybe if I-11 is extended, the fan base might well expand to include Boise!

I have a feeling the Raiders will be right at home in Las Vegas. Seems kind of fitting too, given the team name and all the casinos "raiding" tourist wallets.

Even if the Raiders don't stay in Vegas for the long term I think chances are good the San Antonio-Austin area will snare an NFL team before the Raiders are able to make another move. I'd give it within the next 5 to 10 years. Buffalo, Charlotte and Jacksonville are on the bubble. The Bills, Panthers and Jaguars all want brand new, state of the art stadiums, which currently come with price tags topping well above $1 billion. I strongly doubt the taxpayers of all 3 of those cities would agree to shouldering that cost.

The Panthers' stadium (currently "Bank of America" stadium) opened in 1996. The Jaguars' stadium (aka TIAA Bank Field) opened in 1995. The Bills' stadium (now called New Era Field) opened in 1973. The Bill's field is pretty old and outdated in terms of NFL stadiums. The stadiums for the Panthers and Jaguars are not really old at all. But just like the Georgia Dome, those 1990's era stadiums are not in the same class as the current generation of new stadiums. Cowboys Stadium got this whole billion dollar stadium trend started.

If I had to bet on which team would relocate first I'd say the Bills. The metro population is 1.1 million (2010 census). The Bills' 2018 season has started off badly; the organization shed some of its best (and most expensive) players. The locals may not be too keen on paying a fortune for a new stadium if the team is not winning. Charlotte is a bigger city than Buffalo (800,000 in the city limits, 2.4 million MSA). Jacksonville has around 800,000 residents within its city limits and a 1.3 million MSA.

A new NFL stadium located in the vicinity of New Braunfels or San Marcos would be in one of the most rapidly growing areas of the US. Austin's MSA is over 2 million with a city limits population at the edge of 1 million. San Antonio's city limits population is above 1 million, with a MSA over 2 million. There's about 4.5 million people living in that region along I-35. And there's some big money there. I think if Mark Davis had any plans to move the Raiders to Texas he blew the one shot he had. If he wants to move the team out of Vegas 10 years from now he'll have to look at other cities like maybe San Diego!

Jerrah Jones can barely stand the Houston Texans giving his Cowboys competition. No way in HELL he allows any team to move to San Antonio.

The last actual threat of such a move was after the 2005 season, after New Orleans was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. The Louisiana Superdome (now branded by Mercedes Benz) back then served as a staging area for Katrina evacuees, with all the disastrous results. The Saints had to move their front offices to San Antonio, and even play some home games at the Alamodome (as well as LSU's Tiger Stadium). There was some thought that Tom Benson, the former owner of the Saints, would consider a permanent move to San Antonio, but ultimately that was nixed by then commish Paul Tagliabue. Apparently, the NFL brass didn't want to miss out on those French Quarter Super Bowls. They ultimately convinced Old Man Benson to keep the team in NOLA in exchange for extra cash to renovate the Superdome. It turned out to be the best decision NFL and Benson made; next to hiring Sean Payton as head coach and locking up Drew Brees as their QB at the end of that season.

Anyways, even if San Antonio/Austin did have enough population to support an NFL franchise, Jerrah's the major stumbling block.

If Vegas doesn't work out in terms of attendance, Mark Davis will go wherever he can get a huge stadium subsidy (one of the Oakland sticking points). San Antonio, San Diego, Sacramento......any place there's land, desire for a NFL team, and public $$ to be had. But the team will likely stick out Vegas for at least 5-7 years (they did so with L.A. for 11 -- and that was without their own dedicated stadium, which seems to be an imperative for current management). But we shall see. Maybe if I-11 is extended, the fan base might well expand to include Boise!

I have a feeling the Raiders will be right at home in Las Vegas. Seems kind of fitting too, given the team name and all the casinos "raiding" tourist wallets.

Even if the Raiders don't stay in Vegas for the long term I think chances are good the San Antonio-Austin area will snare an NFL team before the Raiders are able to make another move. I'd give it within the next 5 to 10 years. Buffalo, Charlotte and Jacksonville are on the bubble. The Bills, Panthers and Jaguars all want brand new, state of the art stadiums, which currently come with price tags topping well above $1 billion. I strongly doubt the taxpayers of all 3 of those cities would agree to shouldering that cost.

The Panthers' stadium (currently "Bank of America" stadium) opened in 1996. The Jaguars' stadium (aka TIAA Bank Field) opened in 1995. The Bills' stadium (now called New Era Field) opened in 1973. The Bill's field is pretty old and outdated in terms of NFL stadiums. The stadiums for the Panthers and Jaguars are not really old at all. But just like the Georgia Dome, those 1990's era stadiums are not in the same class as the current generation of new stadiums. Cowboys Stadium got this whole billion dollar stadium trend started.

If I had to bet on which team would relocate first I'd say the Bills. The metro population is 1.1 million (2010 census). The Bills' 2018 season has started off badly; the organization shed some of its best (and most expensive) players. The locals may not be too keen on paying a fortune for a new stadium if the team is not winning. Charlotte is a bigger city than Buffalo (800,000 in the city limits, 2.4 million MSA). Jacksonville has around 800,000 residents within its city limits and a 1.3 million MSA.

A new NFL stadium located in the vicinity of New Braunfels or San Marcos would be in one of the most rapidly growing areas of the US. Austin's MSA is over 2 million with a city limits population at the edge of 1 million. San Antonio's city limits population is above 1 million, with a MSA over 2 million. There's about 4.5 million people living in that region along I-35. And there's some big money there. I think if Mark Davis had any plans to move the Raiders to Texas he blew the one shot he had. If he wants to move the team out of Vegas 10 years from now he'll have to look at other cities like maybe San Diego!

Jerrah Jones can barely stand the Houston Texans giving his Cowboys competition. No way in HELL he allows any team to move to San Antonio.

The last actual threat of such a move was after the 2005 season, after New Orleans was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. The Louisiana Superdome (now branded by Mercedes Benz) back then served as a staging area for Katrina evacuees, with all the disastrous results. The Saints had to move their front offices to San Antonio, and even play some home games at the Alamodome (as well as LSU's Tiger Stadium). There was some thought that Tom Benson, the former owner of the Saints, would consider a permanent move to San Antonio, but ultimately that was nixed by then commish Paul Tagliabue. Apparently, the NFL brass didn't want to miss out on those French Quarter Super Bowls. They ultimately convinced Old Man Benson to keep the team in NOLA in exchange for extra cash to renovate the Superdome. It turned out to be the best decision NFL and Benson made; next to hiring Sean Payton as head coach and locking up Drew Brees as their QB at the end of that season.

Anyways, even if San Antonio/Austin did have enough population to support an NFL franchise, Jerrah's the major stumbling block.

It'd be an interesting bet. Who would get an NFL team first: San Antonio or Albuquerque?

It'd be an interesting bet. Who would get an NFL team first: San Antonio or Albuquerque?

I kind of think Albuquerque would be an awesome, Green Bay-esque market. Not sure it has the corporate support you'd need to make a team work from a financial sense, but being the only game in town, rivalries vs. Vegas, Denver and Dallas (oh, and Arizona too, suppose)… I think folks would pack the house for a team there.

^^^^^^^Hate to be the one to throw cold water on all the sports talk, but there is a whole sub-section ("Sports") in Off-Topic where all this Raiders talk would be more appropriate (regardless of the fact that for at least a while they'll be in the vicinity of I-11!). To get the thread back on track -- the section of US 95 from Las Vegas out to the Mercury test site has been a divided expressway-grade facility for several decades; a few grade separations and/or interchanges would be all that's needed to push I-11 some 50-odd miles NW of the city. IMO, it's going to have to be done sooner or later, and is in a position to lop off a large portion of the whole corridor without significant property acquisition -- and at the same time eliminate troublesome intersections, including NV 157 & 156, the access roads to the Mt. Charleston ski area.

If the likely scenarios prevail at both ends of the Vegas-I-80 corridor (in LV, the direct US 95 route, and at the north end, the option skirting the west side of Fallon), it's likely when construction does commence it will do so from both ends toward the middle; particularly if the growing Fallon/Fernley corridor is in the mix -- stake out a ROW before the developers grab it all, and let the initially completed portions serve as a SIU, connecting I-80 and Reno to the center of development.

As far as I know, there's only three access points from 157 (which is already under development as a grade sep'd interchange) and Indian Springs: Cold Creek & the prisons, 156 and Corn Creek. It might be hard to justify a grade separation at Corn Creek for the foreseeable future.

^^^^^^^Hate to be the one to throw cold water on all the sports talk, but there is a whole sub-section ("Sports") in Off-Topic where all this Raiders talk would be more appropriate (regardless of the fact that for at least a while they'll be in the vicinity of I-11!). To get the thread back on track -- the section of US 95 from Las Vegas out to the Mercury test site has been a divided expressway-grade facility for several decades; a few grade separations and/or interchanges would be all that's needed to push I-11 some 50-odd miles NW of the city. IMO, it's going to have to be done sooner or later, and is in a position to lop off a large portion of the whole corridor without significant property acquisition -- and at the same time eliminate troublesome intersections, including NV 157 & 156, the access roads to the Mt. Charleston ski area.

If the likely scenarios prevail at both ends of the Vegas-I-80 corridor (in LV, the direct US 95 route, and at the north end, the option skirting the west side of Fallon), it's likely when construction does commence it will do so from both ends toward the middle; particularly if the growing Fallon/Fernley corridor is in the mix -- stake out a ROW before the developers grab it all, and let the initially completed portions serve as a SIU, connecting I-80 and Reno to the center of development.

^^^^^^^Hate to be the one to throw cold water on all the sports talk, but there is a whole sub-section ("Sports") in Off-Topic where all this Raiders talk would be more appropriate (regardless of the fact that for at least a while they'll be in the vicinity of I-11!). To get the thread back on track -- the section of US 95 from Las Vegas out to the Mercury test site has been a divided expressway-grade facility for several decades; a few grade separations and/or interchanges would be all that's needed to push I-11 some 50-odd miles NW of the city. IMO, it's going to have to be done sooner or later, and is in a position to lop off a large portion of the whole corridor without significant property acquisition -- and at the same time eliminate troublesome intersections, including NV 157 & 156, the access roads to the Mt. Charleston ski area.

If the likely scenarios prevail at both ends of the Vegas-I-80 corridor (in LV, the direct US 95 route, and at the north end, the option skirting the west side of Fallon), it's likely when construction does commence it will do so from both ends toward the middle; particularly if the growing Fallon/Fernley corridor is in the mix -- stake out a ROW before the developers grab it all, and let the initially completed portions serve as a SIU, connecting I-80 and Reno to the center of development.

Jerrah Jones can barely stand the Houston Texans giving his Cowboys competition. No way in HELL he allows any team to move to San Antonio.

Jerry Jones doesn't own the NFL. And he isn't going to live forever either (IMHO he's pretty weathered looking for 75). Jones is very far from the only person with power in Texas.

Adding to that, it has been 22 years since the Dallas Cowboys have been to or won a Super Bowl. Prices to attend a Cowboys game are hatefully ridiculous, well beyond the normal douchey levels. I think enthusiasm for that team has waned a good bit.

I may live only 200 miles from Dallas, but I really don't care about the Cowboys and prefer following what goes on with other teams like the New Orleans Saints or teams that haven't won a Super Bowl. It's always more interesting to see a team win its first championship than seeing something like the freaking Patriots win another one. BTW, I was happy the Eagles won the last Super Bowl, beating the Patriots no less.

Quote from: abqtraveler

It'd be an interesting bet. Who would get an NFL team first: San Antonio or Albuquerque?

Albuquerque isn't big enough (or rich enough) to land an NFL team. I think the city would need to land an NHL or NBA team and prove it could bring 16,000-20,000 person sized crowds to sports events dependably

Quote from: Sub-Urbanite

I kind of think Albuquerque would be an awesome, Green Bay-esque market. Not sure it has the corporate support you'd need to make a team work from a financial sense, but being the only game in town, rivalries vs. Vegas, Denver and Dallas (oh, and Arizona too, suppose)… I think folks would pack the house for a team there.

Green Bay only still has the Packers because the City of Green Bay owns the team. It's the only non-profit pro sports team in the United States. The city owns Lambeau Field (which has a very storied history) and is within reasonable driving distance of Milwaukee. The franchise is one of the oldest in the NFL, dating back to a time when a few other small cities had pro football teams. Green Bay is the last of such cities.

Quote from: sparker

To get the thread back on track -- the section of US 95 from Las Vegas out to the Mercury test site has been a divided expressway-grade facility for several decades; a few grade separations and/or interchanges would be all that's needed to push I-11 some 50-odd miles NW of the city. IMO, it's going to have to be done sooner or later, and is in a position to lop off a large portion of the whole corridor without significant property acquisition -- and at the same time eliminate troublesome intersections, including NV 157 & 156, the access roads to the Mt. Charleston ski area.

US-95 could be easily upgraded into I-11 up thru Indian Springs. Frontage roads already flank US-95 there. The turn-off for Mercury is already an Interstate quality exit. The 4-lane road drops to 2 lanes after that, but there is still plenty of room to add another pair of lanes. The construction situation only starts to get dicey when US-95 nears Beatty.

Getting I-11 thru or around Beatty and on farther North will be more of a slog with plenty of opportunity for controversy over where the road may ultimately be built. An hour's worth of driving could be eliminated with a bypass of Tonopah.

I think it's going to be a long time before I-11 connects to I-80 (a very long time if the road is built up from Vegas in one direction, piece by piece). In the Reno-Carson City area far more attention is going to go into the US-395 corridor. That's where the development is taking place. Fallon is an hour drive East of Reno. Once again, the federal government would need to step in and help fund/build I-11 up through Fallon. I think I-11 would have limited appeal to anyone in Carson City and growing areas South of there. The drive to Vegas is already long enough as it is and current plans for this Interstate won't make the drive any faster. The new route is not shaving off any mileage.

The drive to Vegas is already long enough as it is and current plans for this Interstate won't make the drive any faster. The new route is not shaving off any mileage.

That's probably correct; I-11 will likely have close to the same actual traversed mileage as the current I-80/50A/95 composite route. Even with its relatively sparse population, in-state politics do matter, especially when most of that population not part of the Las Vegas/Clark County or the Reno-Carson-Gardnerville "strip" is concentrated in several towns -- among them Fallon and Hawthorne, whose input obviously influenced the selection of the Tonopah-I-80 corridor options to the two "finalists", knocking out the eastern option directly NNW of Tonopah (because that would leave Hawthorne out of the picture) and the western option (aside from the sheer cost and project magnitude), as that would leave Fallon and its environs out of the picture as well. Aside from going around the other side of Walker Lake to avoid the cliffside on the west, I-11 will most like end up mimicking US 95 from LV to the Fallon area. NDOT has already decided not to deviate significantly from the existing route south of US 6, and state politics has largely determined the northern portion of the corridor. And, as I've iterated previously, the Fernley area, where I-80 turns from a E-W to a NE-SW trajectory, is the most logical place to effect a junction, so traffic destined for either Reno or inland NW points, particularly SW Idaho, can simply segue onto I-80 in either direction.

Green Bay only still has the Packers because the City of Green Bay owns the team. It's the only non-profit pro sports team in the United States. The city owns Lambeau Field (which has a very storied history) and is within reasonable driving distance of Milwaukee. The franchise is one of the oldest in the NFL, dating back to a time when a few other small cities had pro football teams. Green Bay is the last of such cities.

The City of Green Bay doesn't own the Packers. It's publicly owned by anyone who has stock in the team.